Figidini has Downtown Fired Up

Neapolitan-style pizza from a wood-burning oven? Yes, please

Posted
Thursday, June 13, 2013 10:08 am

Frankie Cecchinelli in the kitchen at Figidini

Katie Poor

Sarah Frazier

Some people just have to do things a certain way. You try to shake and break them, but they stay stubbornly cemented to their certainty. While for many this may seem a sort of stunted growth, for Kara and Frankie Cecchinelli it’s taken them from the shores of Cape Cod to the streets of Providence. Raised in the traditional wonders of wood fire grilled cooking, Frankie continues to uphold the culinary customs of his family.

Once owners of a catering company based out of Cape Cod, operating out of the back of their trailer on a makeshift wood fire grill, the Cecchinellis saw the potential for their business to grow and began looking for a more permanent location. The search originally had them seeking in-state, towards more metropolitan locations like Boston. However, as Kara explains, “Boston just didn’t feel right,” and so they eventually found themselves in Providence. Brought into contact with Cornish Associates, who are developing in the Biltmore Garage, the realtors informed them, to their surprise, that a pizzeria was being actively sought for that location. As if sanctioned by the fates, the signals couldn’t have been clearer. From a tiny trailer in Cape Cod, the Cecchinellis have now built a new hip location for pizza lovers in Providence, Figidini Wood Fire Eatery.

Currently seeking VPN pizza certification for their margherita and marinara pizzas, Figidini takes their reputation as a premier pizza establishment very seriously. VPN certification, which is essentially a legally documented seal of approval from a group of pizza masters out of Naples, based on the use of authentic Neapolitan pizza ingredients and preparation (seriously, look it up), shows how dedicated Kara and Frankie are to providing quality and authenticity to their customers. Figidini’s assortment of pizzas, from a simple Margherita to specialties like Sweet Potato and Fresh Ricotta, demonstrate with every bite the genuine Neapolitan-style approach that the Cecchinellis strove for from their days in Cape Cod. And everything, literally everything, is grilled on their wood fire grill.

Figidini’s also has a variety of unique salads, and of course other grilled items such as shrimp, calamari, brandt skirt steak, sausage, lamb and grilled asparagus and broccoli rabe. Offering one creatively delivered dessert per night, usually consisting of wood grilled fruit with homemade yogurt or some other delicious concoction, every experience is unique, with menus changing every season.